The deal, a combination of cash and retention-based incentives, gives Cisco more firepower to combat growing demand for high-bandwidth applications and services. The San Jose, Calif.-based company said the widespread use of connected mobile devices and greater need for faster network speeds are fueling network traffic, and Intucell’s software is a way to address network issues in real time.

Cisco expects the deal to be completed in the third quarter of fiscal 2013. Intucell employees will become part of Cisco’s Service Provider Mobility Group.

“The mobile network of the future must be able to scale intelligently to address growing and often unpredictable traffic patterns, while also enabling carriers to generate incremental revenue streams," Kelly Ahuja, senior vice president and general manager of the Service Provider Mobility Group, said in a statement.

“Through the addition of Intucell's industry-leading SON technology, Cisco's service provider mobility portfolio provides operators with unparalleled network intelligence and the unique ability to not only accommodate exploding network traffic, but to profit from it.”

Shares of Cisco fell 12 cents to $20.75 a share shortly after the opening bell Wednesday.